Prime Minister Andrew Holness - file photo
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Prime Minister Andrew Holness
The Government is moving to overhaul the process through which state entities make donations.
The change follows allegations of questionable donations made by scandal-hit Petrojam.
Speaking in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, Prime Minister Andrew Holness said the area of donations and corporate social responsibility was a glaring weakness in the Petrojam matter.
He said Cabinet has given direction to the Minister of Finance to, among other things, establish a ceiling for donations.
"...You could still breach the ceiling by applicants coming over and over again, so we have to set a limit to the number of times an applicant can donate within a budget cycle," Mr. Holness pointed out.
He added that the Minister of Finance must also establish "uniformed application and approval processes" to include requirements for the state entity to disclose political party affiliations.
An entity that would like to assist with major works to a basic school, for example, would now be required to pass those funds to an agency like the CHASE Fund or the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF).
All self-financing public bodies will also have to include planned donations in their budgets, while those financed through the consolidated fund will not be allowed to make donations, except for matters dealing with staff welfare.
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